How would CM Punk have done on NXT?

[Cactus~Clothesline]

Since the two NXT competitions have had a top "internet darling" as Michael Cole puts it, how do you think CM Punk would have done on NXT? Would they have kept his CM Punk name? Would his gimmick be the same?

I can only imagine CM Punk would have won his competition or at least top 2 depending who else was in there. His promos have always been good and his wrestling ability has been top notch.

I can assume he would have been a face on NXT in which case I think putting him with Edge would have been great. He could have exploited Edge's suspensions and being rated R and such.

However if he was a heel it would have been PERFECT for Jeff Hardy to be his pro. The feud was obvious already and they had a pretty good one, this would have made for some good NXT TV.

 

[JokerDemonik]

Wow....im shocked i didn't think of this thread first or at all. Im a huge punk fan since his indy days. Id say he would done great and won the NXT, id say he would've had Edge as his pro if not maybe someone like HBK if they did have him as a pro if he didnt make the choice to end his line in WWE

 

[NWannabe]

He's a student, he's a worker, but he sticks to his guns a bit hard. Not sure if the revamp that NXT makes wrestlers go through would treat him well. Then again, it seems to be working for DB. No way, he's having Edge or HBK. They're too big. You are running fantasy NXT, JD. Imagine Punk having a midcarder as his pro. Now, tell me how well a 10 year vet like Punk can mesh with some midcard made by the WWE machine on a show?

I'd say he would have been something akin to Husky Harris, but more polished. I am actually sad I didn't see NXT season 1, but eh. SES is booooring.

 

[1C3-M4N]

Punk would've been good on NXT, Punk debuted in about 2007 and I agree that Edge would've been an awesome heel pro for him at that time. That was a time when about a year and a half before, Edge won his first world title so he wasn't that established as a huge pro as he is now which is a former 9 time world champion. I could diffidently of seen a pairing with someone like Hardcore Holly or Regal if they wanted him with a long time veteran who could show him the ropes. If they wanted a good face character to be his pro I think Rey Mysterio would be really fun to watch on NXT.

But speaking of Punk on NXT it raises questions of other "internet darlings" that could have been on the show, namely I'm thinking of John Cena back in his early days of OVW and UPW back in 2000. Now I know it's a stretch to imagine NXT 10 years ago but one of the biggest stars in WWE getting there start on NXT would raise the credibility of that show a lot. How great would it be if you could look at John Cena or CM Punk today and think "Man I remember him when he was on NXT." The announcers could mention they got their start there once in a while and it might up interest in the show as well and give it a good following. We'll have to see if this works though in the future if NXT really helps establish someone and if the announcers mention it when they make it big. Right now I'm looking at Wade Barret and whoever wins Season 2 to see if they make it big and if NXT still gets mentioned. Does NXT help? Miz and JOMO were both on Tough Enough but how often does that get mentioned? Maybe they'll stop mentioning NXT all together about a wrestler in a few years and it wouldn't of mattered if Punk was on it or not. Punk was in ECW and won that world title but he doesn't mention it when he cuts promos about being a straight edge champion he only talks about the world titles he's won. So maybe NXT won't matter down the line, but it would've still been fun to see Punk on NXT.

Good thread, really got me thinking.